Who is he, Lisbon?
by save me san francisco
Summary: A strange, handsome man from Lisbon's past arrives at the CBI. Patrick Jane is...jealous? Surely not. Plot thickens as secrets from her past are brought into the open by the mysterious stranger. Jisbon. Bad summary. R&R. T for language but only used twice
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Nope, own nothing. Enjoy!**

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Patrick Jane lay with his hands behind his head on his couch at the CBI. It was a boring day for him, and had been all week - he liked having cases; puzzles; riddles to occupy his mind. But currently it seemed that the emotionally unstable psychopaths of California were going through a dry spell, as they had not received any note of a homicide for quite some time. Although he could not deny that this was obviously pleasing and positive news, the fact remained that Patrick Jane was bored.

He opened his eyes a fraction to scan the room for the rest of the Homicide team. Van Pelt and Rigsby were out of sight, and no doubt in the kitchen; keeping their professional distance, as far as the likes of Hightower were aware.

Cho, was, as usual, buried nose-deep in a novel. Jane could not see the title of the book from where he rested, and this disappointed him - Kimball Cho was an inexpressive, yet lovable social enigma that fascinated Jane, and he would have liked to gain insight from his literary preferences.

Jane could see Lisbon through the gaps in the blinds that covered the windows to her office. She was annotating some form of paperwork, and had that intense look of concentration on her face that Jane secretly found quite endearing, not that he would ever admit it.

All of a sudden, his silent musings were disrupted by approaching footsteps that stopped just short of his couch. Jane fully opened his eyes to see a tall, dark haired, quite good looking man that he did not recognise looking down at him questioningly.

"Can I help you?" Jane enquired, without moving an inch.

The stranger paused, and then decided against making any reference to the couch or Jane's position upon it. Instead he cut straight to introducing himself, and held out his hand. "Hey, I'm agent Millar - I just transferred up to Narcotics yesterday from SFPD. It's nice to meet you."

Jane was slightly taken aback by this friendliness. He and many other CBI employees were well aware that most agents from Narcotics were a rather unsociable bunch at the best of times. Nevertheless, he found this refreshing and so he stood and shook the hand of the new agent.

Before Jane had a chance to respond verbally, agent Millar spoke again. "Sorry to seem upfront, but am I correct in thinking that Teresa Lisbon is head of this team?"

The mention of Lisbon's name without the official and professional prefix of "agent" sparked a pang of emotion in Jane that he was not sure that he, himself could identify. It was a mix of curiosity and suspicion mostly, and a few other feelings he was unsure of. However, he did not of course display even a flicker of this upon his face, and simply replied "Yes, that is correct…in fact here she comes now." Lisbon's office door opened as his last words were spoken, and the woman herself was making her way into the bullring.

She placed some files down next to Cho, who was half-heartedly eyeing the new visitor, seemingly out of interest to how he would react to Patrick Jane - the infamous CBI "psychic". She glanced in the direction of his gaze, and then recognition flashed in her eyes as she properly took in agent Millar.

"David?" She asked, happy, but not quite believing her eyes.

"Hello again, Teresa." A wide grin broke across his face as she started towards him, and they embraced in a reunion of old friends.

Jane still stood next to them both, rendered confused and bewildered by Lisbon's sudden display of affection towards this stranger. Cho smirked at Jane's strained expression, which this time he could not even attempt to conceal.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed the first chapter - I initially planned on only continuing the story based on how successful it was, but turned out that I wanted to hear the rest of it myself anyway - so here goes. This chapter is longer and explores more of Jane's feelings about the new stranger…more Jisbon fluff, really. Hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: If I had any influence or say over any single part of the show, I would not have allowed them to introduce Kristina Frye whatsoever. Ergo, I own nothing, and pretend in my mind that she never existed.**

Jane was used to being centre of attention - he loved the looks of amazement, admiration and gratitude that his skills and abilities brought to the faces of his colleagues and people otherwise associated with the cases they worked on. This was the reason he had began his psychic charade years earlier - he loved the fact that he could give people closure, happiness and above all, hope.

However, these looks and feelings that he brought to so many he met meant physically nothing to him the day he met Teresa Lisbon. He gradually realised that inducing any of her emotions gave him such a sense of enjoyment, pleasure and achievement, that meant the feeling he got when impressing others with magic tricks could simply no longer compete.

It was worth the extravagant effort of mischief to provoke the feisty look of determination in her eyes, even if just for a moment. It was a look, that when directed at him, made his insides squirm and his breath catch in his throat. It was a look, imprinted into his memory that he revisited sometimes when "napping", and wondered why a single look of such defiance brought him so much more satisfaction than countless expressions of amusement and joy.

The possibility he had not considered until now, was of course that the reason Lisbon's reactions did such things to him, was simply because they were from Lisbon herself.

This epiphany came to him, precisely three days later, as he rested upon his old, faithful couch at CBI. It was starting to get dark, and the rest of the team were beginning to make their way home. Lisbon was still in her office, of course, and Millar had made brief and fleeting visits to her throughout the day - none of which went unnoticed by Jane.

Indeed, Jane did confront her about the mystery stranger immediately after their introduction. She told them all truthfully that she and "David" used to work together at SFPD before she was offered a position at the CBI.

Jane knew that this was the truth, he not only knew when she was lying - but she, herself knew that Jane could tell when she was lying, and he knew her well enough to know that she had chosen this explanation very carefully, as a way to tell the truth but not completely. He knew there was more to their relationship than colleagues. Not currently, but he deduced that there must have been, at some point, more.

As dusk began to settle, Jane noticed Millar yet again make his way through the bullring towards Lisbon's office. He noted that he had loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar, and was walking with a more confident and casual swagger - perhaps as all were assumed to have left the building by now.

He did not acknowledge Jane, or even seem to notice his existence as he passed him on his way. Jane felt torn between curiosity and sensibility. He knew that this was an opportunity to gain insight into the true relationship between the two "colleagues", yet there was also the voice of reason piping up at the back of his consciousness, asking if he really wanted his suspicions to be confirmed.

He debated this mentally for a split-second, before deciding that so far in his life, he had never chosen a sensible act over indulging his curiosity, and proceeded to quietly approach Lisbon's office.

Lisbon was informally leaning against the front of her desk, talking to Millar in a fashion that was not principally animated but not particularly calmly either. They were a reasonable distance apart, not too near but not so far away as to seem uncomfortable. Jane felt exasperated as he could neither read their body language nor hear their conversation from his distance.

He silently moved closer to the office, straining his eyes and ears for snippets of their interaction. He suddenly became afraid that he was too close and at risk of being discovered; he started to move away when Lisbon's words caught his ears and froze him to the spot.

"David, it's in the past…we're both very different people now…"

Jane's mouth was dry, and he became increasingly aware of the fact that he couldn't breathe, yet even if he had the ability he doubted he would have been able to bring himself to take in any air anyway.

Millar moved closer to Lisbon, far too close for Jane's liking.

"You seem the same to me, Teresa. As sexy as you ever were." His hand slipped around her waist.

Jane felt a surge of anger spasm through him. Not only was this man seducing Lisbon, but he could see no romance, no feeling as he went about it - he was not looking at her beautiful face as he should be, he was raking his eyes over her in a way that made Jane want to rip his eyes from him so he couldn't look at her anymore.

Millar finally closed the small space that remained between them, and captured her lips in a rough kiss, and Lisbon automatically responded, but was hesitant. That split second hesitation was all Jane needed.

Jane fully intended to tear his eyes away from the scene, and discretely leave them. The deafening crash so contrasted to the thick silence that enveloped them all just a few minutes earlier, that the sound surprised him more than when he comprehended the fact that Millar had just been heaved into a nearby filing cabinet.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: thank you again, everyone who reviewed the latest chapter! Especially Jisbon4ever and lysjelonken for reviewing both chapters - amazing! But of course I am incredibly grateful to all of you, so keep 'em coming! I intentionally left the end of the last chapter slightly ambiguous as to whether it was Jane or Lisbon who threw Millar into the filing cabinet; I wanted to see what people thought. But I think it's very in-character of Lisbon to react like that, so you're all correct - she's far too feisty to give into Millar! Also figured that a case should come into the plotline at some point…seeing as it is, y'know, their job.**

**Disclaimer: I own none of the characters…except Millar, and therefore reserve the right to kill him at any time for obstructing Jisbon. So have faith, his time will come.**

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It was still the early hours of the morning when Patrick Jane strolled into the CBI. He always arrived first; he enjoyed making himself tea and then assuming his usual position upon his couch, prepared for the arrival of his colleagues. This routine was sacred to him, he loved to observe the other agents first thing in the morning - for most of them, this was their most vulnerable time, before their first injection of coffee for the day. He mused that it must be mandatory for detectives to have caffeine addictions before they are allocated their badges and guns.

This morning, however; this morning proved to be a morning disruptive to his customary ritual. This morning, he was not first.

As he approached the Homicide department and saw that lights were already lit, he checked his watch in perplexity. Still way too early for anyone else to have arrived, he thought to himself.

Curiously, he scanned the room, to find it empty, until his eyes landed upon Lisbon's office. Of course. He confidently approached her door to see her already engrossed in paperwork. He knew she was a workaholic at the best of times, yet usually not so much that she forgot to get herself a morning coffee…

"Good morning, Lisbon! Bright and early I see."

She jumped at his voice as he entered the room, before realising his identity and composing herself immediately. But not before Jane's sharp senses took note of her reaction.

"Morning, Jane. Just needed a head start on these files…"

He was surprised at that excuse - they were both excruciatingly aware of their lack of cases, let alone urgency lately. He construed that something must be intently on her mind if that was the best she could come up with. He raised one eyebrow at her questioningly.

She blushed slightly, and the sight softened Jane. This was Teresa, again, changing his perspective - vulnerability was not just an opportunity to analyse his co-workers, Lisbon looked vulnerable when she blushed, and in that moment he could not think of a vision more beautiful.

Shying away from Jane's intense gaze, Lisbon glanced through the window, to the CBI parking lot below. All at once, it clicked into place in Jane's head, the reason she was acting skittishly out of character must in some way be involved with…

"Are you avoiding agent Millar?"

Lisbon looked alarmed at his question, but instead of telling him where to go with such a personal question and looking him in the eye with that fierce expression in her eyes that he so adored, as she would have usually done, he noticed that she wouldn't - or couldn't - meet his eyes. Her mouth opened and closed awkwardly for a few seconds, attempting to fabricate some sort of half-truth that Jane might accept. But even she knew that there was no way to wriggle out of such a direct question.

Jane, slightly amused at her efforts, yet far too intent on the subject of agent Millar to tease her, took her silence as an affirmative response.

"Why?"

His mind cast back to the previous week, the sight of Millar, limbs akimbo in the filing cabinet caused a smile to tug at the corners of his mouth. But in a flash he collected himself and concentrated on the crucial conversation at hand. He had no idea what had happened after that evening - he managed to escape the scene undetected just in time to see Millar storming out of her office, a look of fury and humiliation on his face.

With a small sigh of defeat, Lisbon shrugged. "He asked to drive me to work today."

Yet again, this woman shocked Jane into utter bewilderment that no other could induce. An internal battle ensued in his mind; on one hand, Millar's proposition was a very intimate action that one would usually associate with a relationship. However, Lisbon had obviously declined - yet if she had, why was she avoiding him?

Noticing his confused expression, she elaborated; "He wouldn't take no for an answer."

This changed Jane's tact completely; that was very unlike Lisbon - she was not one to give in to persistence. He, of all people, was well aware of that.

As he was about to probe further, he heard spirited footsteps approaching the office, and didn't need to look any further than the expression of dread on Lisbon's face to know that they belonged to agent Millar.

When Millar was aware of Jane's presence, he calmed slightly, and smiled convincingly at them both, before shooting Jane a look that clearly intended to intimidate him out of the room.

When it became apparent from the steady expression on Jane's face that he had no intention of leaving, Millar turned to Lisbon and breathed something barely audible in her ear.

"You shouldn't have done that to me, Teresa…"

She winced at his words, but as quickly as he came, Millar swiftly exited the office, leaving them alone again.

Jane was no way going to let _that _go unexplained, yet just as he opened his mouth, Hightower entered, with news of a new case.

It was with a groan of frustration that Jane realised he had again been robbed of an opportunity to find out who this creep was, and what hold he had over Lisbon to make her act so submissively.

He would get to the bottom of this_ personal _mystery, he vowed - something was not right with this man, nor Lisbon, and the world be damned if there's a case that Patrick Jane can't solve.

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**Any thoughts on Millar? Lisbon was initially pleased to see him, yet now…?**

**How should Jane discover the truth about Millar and Lisbon's past? What IS the truth? Reviews/ideas please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Wow! Thankyou THANKYOU for all the reviews! They make me so happy, and want to update ASAP…**

**I was pretty stumped as to what the massive secret plotline should be (I don't plan ahead, it just unfolds as I type; just as much fun writing as it is reading!), I didn't want it to be too predictable either…but I think I've got it; let's see what you think.**

**Thank you again!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, Simon Baker still has his shirt on. Therefore, the Mentalist is yet to be mine.**

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The case that fell into the hands of Lisbon's Homicide team that week was one of those cases that were particularly hard to stomach.

A relatively rich family that on the outside seemed perfectly happy, yet this mask concealed the truth of the deep, dark and detached relationships between both parents and siblings. One child had brutally murdered the other out of the sheer, unabashed competitive nature to which they had been nurtured.

While Jane did find cases such as these completely fascinating from sociological and psychological perspectives, he observed the tragedy and noted that it affected his colleagues also.

In particular he noted that it had hit Lisbon quite hard. He knew that child cases always distressed her, as a result of her traumatic childhood he presumed. She had never told him the ins and outs of her experiences as a young girl, but he knew as others did about the hard, true facts of her mother's death and her father's alcoholic response to this heartbreak.

He had further suspicions as to details of her ordeal, but could not set a single one as certain. The fact that her emotions at times were so easy to read, yet her secrets at others so obscure, both frustrated and enthralled him. She was different to the rest; an impressively complex individual that Jane often subconsciously compared to the most intricate and fulfilling puzzle he had ever set his mind to. One that he came close to, but never quite succeeded in solving.

Another slightly unusual factor to the solving of this particular case was the frenzied involvement of agent Millar. At first Jane put this observation down to the fact that he watched Millar like a hawk after the incident he had witnessed in Lisbon's office a week earlier. But after the first few days, he could not deny that whenever there was a slight development in the investigation, Millar was in her office like a shot, despite clearly having no ulterior motive nor invested interest in the case.

He always left with a smug smile on his face, that caused a bubble of emotion to rise through Jane, and it took all of his inner strength to remain fixed to his couch and refraining from putting his head through a window during those moments.

Lisbon continued to act as anxious and out of character as she had that day in her office, and it drove Jane literally to the brink of sanity in his attempt to fathom the reason. This unusual behaviour was not _caused_ by the case, but the investigation and Millar's involvement in it had acted as a severely aggravating catalyst in her transformation.

So far, the connection that was painstakingly obvious just screamed at him; Millar. Something about the man is affecting Lisbon, but _what_…

Jane instinctively knew that the answer to his question could not be obtained through a simple confrontation with Lisbon herself. A secret that caused her this much internal conflict and grief would no doubt be locked and wrapped securely within the beloved figurative "puzzle", and was essentially inaccessible to the likes of Patrick Jane.

Therefore, the solution, as much as he disliked it, seemed to be to confront the only other person who knew the truth. Agent Millar himself.

He braced himself, and yet again in such a short space of time, Jane had no idea what to expect. The potential outcomes could be that Millar confesses all, in which case, would he be able to bear the truth of knowing the specifics of Millar's romantic endeavours with Lisbon? The other outcome of course being that he denies all knowledge and involvement, which of course, would lead Jane nowhere.

The outcome that did occur, however, was one that was not even comprehended by Jane's predictions.

Outwardly confident, yet with a dry mouth and limited breaths, Jane approached the door to the office that bore the name "agent D. Millar: Narcotics Specialist". He rapped upon the glass before entering; an unusual action for Jane, but he had previously decided that his usual unnerving spontaneity would not bode well for him in obtaining this delicate information.

Jane was greeted reservedly by Millar. Once inside the office, Millar gestured politely for him to sit opposite him at his desk, whilst eyeing him suspiciously.

"What can I do for you Mr. Jane?"

Jane had thought of everything he would like to say to agent Millar, however not one of his propositions was planned for a scenario during which the agent acted as calmly and civil as he did in that moment. Sighing, and deciding to just throw himself in at the deep end, he began.

"Agent Lisbon is dear to the hearts of her whole team, and we believe that this case in particular has affected her somewhat. As you seem to be playing such an active role in her life at the moment, I was wondering if you could provide some insight."

A smile began to form at agent Millar's mouth. Not a smile of sympathy or compassion, but a knowing smile, with a glint of something that caused Jane much discomfort in his eyes.

"Teresa and I, we have a past, a past that she left many years ago. During that time, she confided in me."

He paused, his eyes glazing over at the memories. Jane could not deny this man was in love with Lisbon, or at least the Lisbon she used to be, back at SFPD. He almost felt sympathy for the man, until his eyes snapped back into focus and directly bore into Jane, before continuing.

"You see, she may have left that past behind, but she can't undo the things she did, or let happen. I know things about your precious agent Lisbon, things that would ruin her career and reputation in a heartbeat. She can't seem to learn her lesson either…always claiming to be blissfully unaware of the pain she causes, whether directly or not. My "involvement" as you put it? She has made her choices. I simply wish to remind her of that."

Jane took a breath. This man was clearly insane. He swiftly exited the office, mind racing trying to analyse what the man had just said.

He was stricken with some form of grief that he believed to be caused by Lisbon, and was therefore responding by blackmailing her with secrets she had divulged to him at a time in their relationship when they were close…

His thoughts momentarily suspended as he processed the fact that they had certainly at one point been lovers, and he later deemed it odd to not have been surprised as his heart sank at this thought. But there was time to try and understand that later.

The question being, of course, what secrets could Lisbon possibly hold that consist of such devastating consequences? The secrets of her childhood that Jane had for so long pondered? It hurt him that she may have confided those in someone other than him, despite knowing the unreasonable extent of those thoughts. He hadn't known her when she had known Millar, and besides, they were lovers…and what was Jane to Lisbon?

The only thing that he doubted of this theory was that no matter the degree of trauma she had experienced, it wasn't anything that could affect her career, as Millar had so explicitly mentioned. So there was something else… something she had done? Or _let_ happen? And what was it about this case that Millar was so intent on using to torture her?

Jane settled back into his couch, feeling that his investigations had clouded his knowledge further, rather than providing any more pieces to his puzzle.

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**I know that got complicated there…but all will be revealed…somehow. I promise, bear with me! Just need to think of a way to get Lisbon to open up…and explain what Millar means exactly. The end is near, couple more chapters max I reckon. Very ambiguous at the moment, but tell me your thoughts! Review Review Review! **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to update…I ummed and ahhed and rewrote a few times…**

**I didn't actually realise how much it sounded like it was related to Bosco's secret until you all told me! And you're right - I have made it so. **

**This penultimate chapter is tiny, but I am writing the last chapter RIGHT NOW and it will follow imminently!****Thank you everyone who has so far reviewed, you're all incredible - don't stop now!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing, whatsoever.**

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The case that the team had recently closed, sealed and stored away in some depressing room of records, involved a family that had torn itself apart. The fact that made it so deeply tragic, was the knowledge that it was not entirely the fault of one evil soul that could easily be sought out and then punished to the full extent of the law. No, it had been a combination of unfortunate events and poor reactions and judgements. Each and every member of that family was innocent, and guilty.

Jane knew that this was the logic that tortured Lisbon, and made it so difficult to handle cases like this last one. It reminded her so of her own childhood. Despite the hate she felt for her father, she never could bring herself to blame him for what he did to his children, because she determined that it was a result of his grief at an unfortunate event and nothing more. If anyone, she blamed herself for not healing and holding her family together when her father was unable to do so, and could not fathom the ridiculousness of this guilt she thrust upon herself.

Millar knew this. Millar had been entrusted with her deepest, darkest secrets and emotions - and he was using them against her for some reason. He had also been there the day that agent Bosco jeopardized all of their careers. There was something he wanted from Lisbon, and she needed his silence.

Jane felt stuck between a rock and a hard place. He knew all of these pieces to the puzzle, but just couldn't fit them together without knowing the vital information that he knew Lisbon would never grant him. And all the while, he ached with a mess of unidentifiable emotions of his own.

That was of course, until the evening he fell asleep on his CBI couch, and awoke to agent Millar pressing his gun to Jane's sleepy forehead.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Pretty much said it all in the last one…I hope the ending isn't a let down, we'll see, tell me what you all think.**

**I hope to start up another fic soon, there are a few inspirations bubbling at the back of my mind…**

**Here goes.**

**Disclaimer: Oh yeah, I own the Mentalist. Really? No.**

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"Oh for fucks sake, David, why do you have to bring Jane into it?" Lisbon's voice was harsh, but shook with fear.

Jane was suddenly alert and aware of his surroundings. He was now sitting on his couch, Lisbon beside him, and he could feel the menacingly cool metal of Millar's standard issue weapon digging into his temples. Calmly as possible, he asked what he believed to be quite an obvious question.

"May I interrupt and ask what we are all doing here in the middle of the night, and more specifically why a gun is being held to my head?"

Millar was deadly serious and unamused.

"So, Teresa, this is him? This is why you're willing to risk it all? Your career and both of your lives?" He pressed the gun harder to Jane in fury.

Jane sat, bewildered, staring sideways at Lisbon for a reaction or response.

Her eyes dropped to the floor. When she didn't reply, Millar continued.

"Just because Bosco is dead doesn't mean that I go away too, Teresa. I still know what he did for you, I was there. I assume you must have told lover boy here all about it." Millar glanced down at Jane and saw the incredulous expression on his face. "Or perhaps not…" Millar smiled a smile that made Lisbon shift uncomfortably in her seat beside Jane.

"You're getting it all out of hand, David, you're not thinking clearly, just calm do-" Lisbon's words were interrupted as Millar swooped down and held his face very close to hers.

"No, Teresa, I'm perfectly fine, you're the one who obviously needs to clear her head, choosing some _psychic_ wannabe over me, after all we went through together." She shivered as he whispered his last words in her ear, his free hand cupping her face.

Suddenly he stood straight, and concentrated on Jane, still holding the gun to him.

"So, lover boy, seems we need to fill you in on a few things..." He glanced at Lisbon before continuing, "as I said before, there are many things you don't know about your beloved agent Lisbon."

Jane gulped. The amount of will it took not to have already smashed this jerks face in by now astounded him, although he knew that if he surprised Millar, there was a chance that he could hurt Lisbon, he was clearly not in a fit state of mind. He needed to keep him talking, calm him down. And find out what the fuck was happening, while he was on.

"Are you going to tell him, sweetheart, or shall I? He deserves to know, doesn't he?"

Lisbon exhaled deeply, and Jane could feel her breath tickle the hairs on his arms.

"When David and I were partners at SFPD, we were both rookies, Bosco was our mentor. I was still living at home with my father and my brothers because…"

Her voice cracked, and Jane knew why and felt a rush of sympathy, affection and an overwhelming need to hold her. Millar however, took pleasure in her discomfort.

"Because Daddy didn't want her to leave, and _saint _Teresa just couldn't leave her brothers alone with him…does lover boy know what you used to let Daddy do to you, Teresa? Does he still want you, knowing that?" Millar goaded.

Jane saw the tears that Lisbon was desperately trying to blink away, and felt helpless. He felt his heart silently shatter as hers must have done, so many times before. He placed a hand over hers, warily glancing at Millar to see if he would react. He seemed to be completely out of it, as he didn't notice - he was hell bent on some form of revenge he thought he deserved.

"Finish the story, Teresa, tell him, if he means that much to you!" Millar said loudly, his voice full of anger, waving his weapon uncontrollably between both Jane and Lisbon.

Jane turned to Lisbon, and looked intently into her beautiful, fearful green eyes. "Tell me, Lisbon, just play along and we'll be okay." His eyes conveyed a range of emotions he hadn't entirely addressed, but he needed her to know he felt.

She understood. "One day, my father flew into the SFPD headquarters in a rage…he was drunk, but more so than usual. He demanded to see me, and attacked Bosco when he tried to calm him. I came out and tried to talk him down, but he lashed out at me, and that's when Bosco and David and most of SFPD knew my secret…" She stared at the floor throughout her confession.

"Dear old Bosco agreed not to arrest the old man, on the condition she get as far away from him as possible. But not our _saint_ Teresa…" Millar jutted in, running a finger down Lisbon's cheek.

Shivering, Lisbon continued. "Bosco came to my rescue the following week, when my brother called 911…Dad had gotten really mad at Tommy, and me for defending him. He had smacked us about but then he turned…worse. He turned on the gas at the stove, and said that we didn't deserve to live for what we had done…he had a lighter and was flicking it on and off. He didn't know what he was doing, he was so drunk."

Millar finished her story as Lisbon squeezed her eyes shut, trying to blank out the image of her father forcing her over the stove to breathe in the gas and holding the flame mere inches from her face.

"So me and Bosco heard the call, rushed over to the Lisbon's to find them. Bosco could have talked him down, they all could have lived had he done his job. But not Sam, he was far too emotionally involved. He shot him, point black, not a flicker of mercy to speak of."

"And we agreed never to speak of it again. It would ruin all of us." Lisbon whispered.

Jane was left dumbfounded by this revelation. He thought back to Bosco, and how Lisbon had blackmailed him to get Jane out of jail…he had no idea that it was something like _this._

"But then, after so many years, I finally track her down, and she wants _you_? After we kept that secret? After helping her through that trauma, she wants some other guy who doesn't even want her back? How pathetic, useless and _stupid _must she be? She thinks we're going to just go back to being _friends_?"

Something shifted inside Jane. Perhaps it was the accusation that Lisbon loved him, or at least wanted him over Millar. Perhaps it was simply the pure anger he felt for the man before him bubbling over to a point of no return. Perhaps it was the realisation, when all the puzzle pieces fitted together instantly, that he loved Teresa Lisbon. He loved her more than anything and would not see her tortured by this man, nor her past a moment longer.

He sprung up from the couch, all cautiousness or fear of danger obliterated in his moment of emotion. He struck Millar hard in the jaw, with more force than he'd ever known he could muster. His actions were so unexpected that Millar was left reeling, gawping at Jane's seething face of thunder.

The hand brandishing the weapon relaxed for mere seconds, but that was all it took for Lisbon's cop instincts to kick in, and knock it out of his grasp. She picked it up and pointed it firmly at him, whilst tossing her handcuffs at Jane, gesturing to restrain him.

After the flurry of CBI cops had left, all the reports had been filed, Millar was safely locked away and they had both reluctantly been checked over by paramedics, Lisbon and Jane were once again left alone in the morning light of her office.

Jane knew that too much had happened that night for them to deny anything any longer, and he just hoped that what Millar had implied was true.

He silently approached her, and gently placed a hand on her arm. He then took a deep breath, and spilled his heart at her feet. He told her how much he loved how her eyes flashed when she was angry, how she was so difficult for him to read, how much he ached for her when she left a room, and how much it hurt him when he found out she had been involved with Millar. He had been jealous, utterly and completely jealous because he wanted to be the one she confided in and shared her emotions with. He loved her, more than she would ever know.

She had remained silent for the entirety of his confession, and still made no sound as she searched his eyes for genuity. He began to fill with dread, as she continued to say nothing.

Just as he was about to apologise, she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a searing kiss that made his insides jolt with happiness. The kiss deepened, and then as they finally broke away for air, they grinned at each other like idiots.

"I love you too, Patrick Jane."


End file.
